Josephine Silone Yates
| Josephine Silone Yates | |
|---|---|
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| Born | 1852 or November 15, 1859 Mattituck, New York, U.S. |
| Died |
September 3, 1912 Kansas City, Missouri, U.S. |
| Nationality | United States |
| Alma mater | Rhode Island State Normal School, later named Rhode Island College, Rhode Island |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Chemistry, education |
| Institutions | Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri |
Josephine Silone Yates (1852 or November 15, 1859 – September 3, 1912), trained in chemistry, was one of the first black teachers hired at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri, and, upon her promotion, the first black woman to head a college science department. She may have been the first black woman to hold a full professorship at any U.S. college or university.
Yates was also significant in the African-American women's club movement. She was a correspondent for the Woman's Era (the first monthly magazine published by black women in the United States) and wrote for other magazines as well. Yates was instrumental in establishing women’s clubs for African-American women: she was the first president of the Women's League of Kansas City (1893) and the second president of the National Association of Colored Women (1900–04).
Josephine Silone's birth is given variously as 1852, and as November 15, 1859. She was the second daughter of Alexander and Parthenia Reeve Silone. During her childhood, her family lived with her maternal grandfather, a freed slave, Lymas Reeves. Her mother taught her to read from the Bible. She started school at the age of six, and was rapidly advanced by her teachers.
Josephine's uncle, Rev. John Bunyan Reeve, was the pastor of the Lombard Street Central Church in Philadelphia. At the age of 11, she went to live with him so that she could attend the Institute for Colored Youth. There she was mentored by its director, Fanny Jackson Coppin. The next year, Rev. Reeve moved to Howard University, and Josephine went to live with her maternal aunt, Francis I. Girard, in Newport, Rhode Island. There she attended grammar school and later Rogers High School. She was the only black student at both, but was given respect and support by her teachers. Her science teacher considered her his brightest pupil and enabled her to do additional laboratory work in chemistry. She graduated as valedictorian of the Rogers High School class of 1877 and received a medal for scholarship. She was the first black student to graduate from Rogers High School.
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